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Hip pain and misalignments are a fairly complex condition, often resulting in migrating pain and compensation elsewhere in the body. This comprehensive 1-hour treatment focuses on the lumbar vertebrae (L 1 – L5), sacrum (S1 – S5), and pelvis. I have synthesized a series of specific muscle energy techniques, joint releases, non-invasive osteopathic body therapy, passive corrections and bio-dynamic stretches to create a highly effective treatment designed to realign the hip structure yet treats the whole body and affects the entire spine. $95.00 per treatment or $500.00 for a series of 6 consecutive weekly treatments.

I dig yoga because it’s fun.
I do yoga to salute the sun.
Yoga helped me put my body back together,
I think I could do it forever.

I dig yoga because of the people meet.
I do yoga anywhere, even in the street.

I dig yoga because it makes my butt look good in jeans
And it helps release gas after I eat too many beans.
It keeps my internal organs clean
And my abs shiny and lean.

I dig yoga because it makes me feel good.
I dig yoga, I bet everyone would –
Except those that don’t
They’ll do something else,
Secretly they’re yogis, by being themself.
That’s the key to inner wealth,
Just be plain old you, just be yourself.

Yoga in disguise or yoga in your face,
Yoga is being done all over the place.
From the north to the south, even in outer space.
The more I do, the more I dig,
My heart and body do a celebratory jig.
Yoga for the strong and yoga for the weak,
Come on in and have a peak.
You might like what you see
But, if you don’t, that’s fine with me.

Do your dharma and have a good time.
I wish you the very best and hope you enjoy this rhyme.

Yoga, yoga, I love you so –
I can do you at home or take you to go.
We can party in the rain, sun or even the snow –
In calm or quiet or when the wind blows.

I dig yoga because, sometimes, it makes me cry and shed a layer
Sometimes it helps me fly and become and dragon slayer.
It makes me strong, yet soft,
It even helps heal my aching cough.

I dig yoga for a lot of reasons
Probably because it can be done in all seasons.
But above all it inspires me
To be me –
Whenever, wherever, however
I want to be.

Well-being and health have always been important to people. Being happy and having peace of mind, as well as having a strong and flexible body to enjoy life with, are (or should be) goals of all of us. Therapeutic massage can be a powerful way to help people in achieving these goals. Whether physically through perfecting balance and strength, or mentally by increasing the level of good hormones to improve mood, there are many real world benefits of massage.

Neuromuscular therapy, a type of massage is a medically oriented form of massage based on physiological laws and principals, pays close attention to alignment, condition of soft tissue, and the release of adhesions and restrictions throughout the body. It aims to treat underlying causes of chronic pain involving the muscular and nervous systems.[1] It can help alleviate many medical problems, large and small, through working on trigger points (pressure points) found throughout the body.

As yoga practitioners, these benefits are of particular importance to us. Frequent massage can improve our quality of life by alleviating the post-exercise soreness that can come from a rigorous workout. “Practicing massage therapists know that people who get massage regularly demonstrate greater improvement and … reduction in pain and muscular tension, as well as an improvement in posture,” says Anne Williams, author of Spa Bodywork: A Guide for Massage Therapists (Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2006) and education program director at Associated Bodywork & Massage Professionals. A recent study has shown that massage can reduce pro-inflammatory cytokines which may be involved in pain. More traditional methods of reducing inflammation – the use of NSAIDS – may, while reducing pain, interfere with the immune system’s ability to heal the affected part of the body. Thus, Neuromuscular Massage can work towards reducing NSAID use, which in turn can boost the healing process.[2]

Medical professionals know that disease progression can be stress-related, and our own experiences show us that nothing wears on us faster – inside or out – than the effects of stress. However, stress might never reach those physiologically detrimental levels if you are able to receive stress-relieving bodywork on a regular basis. “Not only would your body benefit by regularly unleashing its aches and pains instead of adapting to them, but your mind would have time to wash away the stresses of a life lived in overdrive.”[3]

It is important to realize that the benefits that come from massage are multiplied by frequent, regular treatments. The Journal of Body work and Movement Therapy reports that massage therapy versus relaxation therapy with chronic low back pain patients was evaluated for reducing pain, depression, anxiety and sleep disturbances, as well as improving trunk range of motion over a 5-week period. The study evaluated thirty adults who had been suffering from low back pain for at least 6 months. After the end of the 5-week study, the massage therapy group reported less pain, depression, anxiety and sleep disturbance, and showed improved trunk flexion.[4] This demonstrates not just the effectiveness of massage, but the effectiveness of REGULAR massage over time.

So, while we already know therapeutic massage can address injuries, scar tissue, and chronic pain, regularly scheduled neuromuscular massage therapy can be a powerful ‘force multiplier’ in maintaing your body on a ‘workout-to-workout’ basis, AND also be an investment in your long-term health.

Well. 2012 sure has delivered on its promise of enormous change! In the last month, an overwhelming cascade of events has impacted the Anusara yoga community. All of us are still processing these events in our own ways, and it’s probably not a stretch to say that we are surprised to find ourselves in this place.

Yoga Coalition is a group of yoga teachers who have recently distanced themselves from John Friend and Anusara, Inc. Regardless of our transitions from Anusara, Inc., we are as committed as ever to excellence in the art of teaching yoga, and to our local and global communities. As the dust settles from these recent experiences, we find ourselves asking:

What now?

We find the deep camaraderie we developed as co-creators of Anusara yoga is stronger than ever, and we know these bonds help us both to serve others and to evolve ourselves. Change has invigorated our creativity and our self-awareness, so we don’t wish to replicate the old structure, or to create without careful consideration. Instead, we want to initiate a movement toward a new paradigm of collectivity that we can grow organically over time, one based on our education and shared wisdom.

Moving forward, we know we won’t have a perfectly unified vision. This is a good thing–it allows room for more than one voice, and gives us the freedom to grow, independently and together.

We hope to collaborate and build on existing relationships, in a decentralized way that fosters creativity and allows grassroots initiative. Some of us may collaborate on projects and programs to empower our students. Some may focus on building bridges to the larger yoga community. Some of us may work to re-imagine what a serious yogic education, with a true standard of excellence, looks like.

As some of you already know, Anusara yoga has been in a serious crisis the past ten days. Allegations spread via internet about the unethical behaviour of its founder, our teacher, John Friend. Naime has been in Athens teaching all week, experiencing crisis in a different way as the city has been under seige with riots. This past week, I have spent every free moment scrambling to make sense of the ‘mess’. Through an endless stream of conversations with many of my friends and leaders in the Anusara community, and through John’s own admission, we painfully discovered certain accusations to be true. Banding together in hope John would pay attention to our unified voice, we offered our heartfelt pleas and recommendations on how to best support Anusara through these turbulent waters. The level of integrity, commitment and raw honesty that I witnessed this week with my colleagues has left me with profound respect for each of these courageous hearts as well as for the entire Anusara kula. We have been brought to razors edge of our emotions, each one of us being asked to ‘risk it all’ in the name of our highest truth. I realize now that John’s actions have become a catalyst for all of us to dig deeper inside, and along with John, start answering some tough questions. Are we offering ourselves the dignity to be honest and real with ourselves and each other? Are our words truly in alignment with our actions?

After much deliberation and a heavy heart, Naime and I feel it is time to move in a new direction, away from John. We have the utmost respect for the teachings of Anusara yoga and will always honor John Friend for all that he has given us personally and professionally. We remain steadfast and forever true to our commitment to the Principles. Having served the Anusara community for 13 years, we are trained to seek nothing less than excellence and Shri (beauty). Our commitment to these values and the beautiful communities we serve are unwavering. We intend to complete all of our 2012 Anusara trainings with integrity, clarity and dedication, and are confident our students will receive the total support and credits necessary if/when they seek Anusara certification.

As we peek delicately off into the horizon, we are inspired by what we see. We are birthing our second DIG YOGA studio, in Philadelphia, in just a few months with our new partner Mariel Freeman. Many collaborations with our beloved friends are already in the works, including advanced trainings and workshops with our pals/teachers Noah Mazé, Sianna Sherman, Douglas Brooks, Amy Ippoliti, Paul Muller-Ortega, Christina Sell, Desiree Rumbaugh, Martin Kirk, etc. Our vision for DIG is to expand the boundaries of yoga to celebrate the diversity of many voices and humbly serve our yoga communities with integrity, compassion and depth.

Our dedication to living yoga has lead us to everything we have today, and while it surely is not always the easiest path, it has offered us the ability to sit closer to the very light and core of our heart. We lovingly accept John for his humanity, offer him blessings for true healing and thank him deeply for every gift he has given us.